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DNR confirms cougar in Ontonagon County

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources on Monday confirmed the presence of a cougar in Ontonagon County.
The animal was captured on a trail camera on private property on Sept. 8, walking toward the front of the camera and clearly showing it has an ear tag and a radio collar.
DNR Wildlife Division staff visited the property Sept. 12 where the trail cam is mounted and verified the location of the camera.

Tribune Staff

Sep 14, 2011

“We are pleased that the individuals that caught this animal on video reported it promptly to the DNR and allowed us to verify the location of the camera,” said Adam Bump, a wildlife biologist with the DNR’s Cougar Team. “It is a very interesting sighting given the fact that the cougar has been radio-collared and ear-tagged.”

The DNR is in the process of tracking down possibly where the cougar is from, and is contacting other states with known cougar populations. Only western states currently have cougars collared for research projects, so it is possible that the animal traveled a great distance to reach the Upper Peninsula.

DEER SEASON OPENS THURSDAY

The 2011 deer-hunting season kicks off in Michigan on Thursday with a five-day early antlerless-only deer season in part of the state.

Hunting will be allowed only on private land in portions of the Lower Peninsula. See the 2011 Antlerless Deer Hunting Digest available at license agents or www.michigan.gov/deer for a map of the areas open.

The season will be followed immediately by a four-day youth antlerless deer season, Sept. 20-23. This season is open throughout Deer Management Unit (DMU) 486, which encompasses most of the southern half of the Lower Peninsula. See the 2011 Antlerless Deer Hunting Digest or the 2011 Michigan Hunting and Trapping Digest, available at license agents or www.michigan.gov/deer, for a map of DMU 486. An appropriate public- or private-land antlerless license or DMAP valid within DMU 486 is required.

For both of these seasons, firearms, archery gear, or crossbows may be used, but hunter orange is mandatory. Hunters must have permission from the landowner or leaseholder before hunting on private land.